Mays best percentage stealer in NL in 1971

It's hard to believe but the ML official averages show that 40-year old Willie Mays had the beat base stealing percentage in 1971. He was thrown out only 3 times in 26 tries.

This marks the fifth tine that Mays has led his league in this department since the ML started "caught stealing" records on a regular basis in 1951. Previously they had done it 1920-25, and then stopped. The AL has done it almost continuously since 1920.

As can be noted from the listing below, the league leader in total thefts frequently does not have the best percentage. An asterisk indicates when the percentage leader also led in thefts. The beat percentage in the last 21 years was compiled by Amos Otis of Kansas City in 1970 when he was nabbed only twice in 35 attempts. Bobby Bonds of the Giants was caught only 4 times in 49 attempts in 1969.

The percentage leaders, based on 20 attempts for the 154-game schedule and 21 attempts for 162 games are carried below for each year since 1951.

Year

A.L. Leader

SB

CS

N.L. Leader

SB

CS

1951

Phil Rizzuto

18

3

Sam Jethroe

*35

5

1952

Jackie Jensen

18

6

Peewee Reese

*30

5

1953

Jackie Jensen

18

8

Jackie Robinson

17

4

1954

Forrest Jacobs

17

3

Dee Fondy

20

5

1955

Minnie Minoso

19

8

Willie Mays

24

4

1956

Luis Aparicio

*21

4

Willie Mays

*40

l0

1957

Jim Rivera

18

2

John Temple

19

5

1958

Jim Rivera

21

3

Willie Mays

*31

6

1959

Mickey Mantle

21

3

Willie Mays

*27

4

1960

Luis Aparicio

*51

8

Julian Javier

19

4

1961

Chuck Hinton

22

5

Frank Robinson

22

3

1962

Dick Howaer

19

2

Maury Wills

*104

l3

1963

Luis Aparicio

*40

6

Henry Aaron

31

5

1964

Luia Aparicio

*57

17

Tommy Harper

24

3

1965

Z. Versalles

27

5

Jimmy Wynn

43

4

1966

B. Campaneria

*52

l0

Henry Aaron

21

3

1967

Horace Clarke

21

4

Joe Morgan

29

5

1968

Tommy McCraw

20

5

Henry Aaron

28

5

1969

B. Campaneris

62

8

Bobby Bonds

45

4

1970

Amos Otis

33

2

Ken Henderson

20

3

1971

Tommy Harper

25

3

Willie Mays

23

3

(Editor's note: An updated list of year-by-year SB% leaders can be found at Baseball-Reference.com by clicking here.)

This article originally appeared in the 1972 "Baseball Research Journal."